Sweet Dreams Nevermore
by Sunken Stars
Summary: Ruby expected a calm sleepover filled with fun, but what she got was anything but. A night filled with consequences for accidental actions, arising from circumstances beyond her control. / Lancaster and Monochrome angst.


Author's Notes: For my friends Okaami-chin, Fate-117, and OrganOfFlames. With thanks and credit to all three for helping me with the story, and concept. Extra credit to Fate-117 for betaing the story, as well as coming up with the title.

I ended up writing this within six hours in a single night, so if some things seem off it's fully on me for being slightly delirious. I've never written so fast in my entire life, honestly. I guess I just loved the idea _too_ much. Hope you all enjoy, regardless!

* * *

Ruby eyed everyone with happiness, feeling like for the first time in a long time she and all her best friends were together and having fun. It wasn't every day they had enough free time to just hang out. The majority of the time they were swamped with work, or busy working on team exercises and missions. Most of which required them to be out for days and days. Their schedules were off to the point where one team would return, and one team would leave.

As one could guess, this didn't provide a lot of time to hang out. And so this was essentially heaven to Ruby, who had only wanted to see Jaune again after a long time spent working, and now not only did she get to spend time with him, but everyone else.

Sure, she and Jaune were together, but that didn't mean she didn't want to see everyone else. She always missed Nora's antics and Ren's straight-faced sarcasm. He always delivered it in such a way that made it seem so unique, and she always busted out laughing, much to his pleasure.

Pyrrha too, she was always a treat to talk to. The redhead was so positive sometimes when things weren't nagging at her mind. She always managed to bring out the best in Ruby; or at least Ruby liked to think so. It was Pyrrha who suggested they have a sleepover as well, so it was just nice having her join them.

They all needed it so badly, the time off. The chance to relax with one another, as one big group again. Even Weiss and Blake, who seemed to be so happy just to be near one another, were getting antsy from the lack of other people to talk to.

And here they were, she thought, all curled up together, enjoying one another's company in good spirits. There was absolutely nothing that could bring them down. She knew it to be true. What could possibly ruin so perfect a moment?

With all of them conversing, joking around; it was just like old times.

Ruby leaned up against Jaune's side, mewling happily as she felt his arm encircle her, pulling her even closer to him. He was so warm, Ruby wondered if there was anyone else that could ever be as warm and comfortable as him. She didn't think there could be, really. She just amused herself with the thought while he so gently nuzzled his head into her neck, leaving a soft kiss on her skin.

It was so delicate and loving that she couldn't help but let out a coo, giggling as she heard Blake do so from the other side of the room.

She opened her eyes and gazed at Weiss and Blake, the two almost mimicking her and Jaune perfectly. Though Weiss was sitting on Blake's lap, and Blake had both of her arms around Weiss. It looked like an embrace full of warmth, to Ruby. An embrace of love, through and through.

Weiss, though, didn't look to be in the mood for being the submissive one tonight, Ruby thought with a sly smile. As much as it was probably inappropriate, Ruby couldn't help but take an interest in their intimacy. It was so interesting to see how they switched, and how often they did it. One day Weiss could be the one initiating everything, from surprise touches and hugs to simple kisses. And the next, Blake was the clear leader of the relationship, taking charge of everything and leaving Weiss to enjoy her new role.

"Blake, I love you," Weiss said gently, her tone being low, but not low enough for Ruby to miss. Blake responded back with a purr and a smile. You could just see everything she wanted to say in her eyes, thought Ruby. It was amazing how Weiss didn't even need to hear it back. They just knew one another's body language so well by now.

It was to be expected, being together for so long. Ruby knew that it was the same for her and Jaune, but she still liked to hear it back.

Jaune kissed her on the cheek, making her switch all of her attention onto him, suddenly wanting nothing more than to be on his lap like Weiss was on Blake's. He shifted slightly, allowing her this small want with no rejection even being hinted at.

It was comfortable on his lap. So, so comfortable. His pajamas were so soft, and she loved the feel of the fabric. She started to rub at his chest, resting her head against his shoulder.

It was really like a win-win for her. The soft fabric was one thing, but the muscles beneath were a really, _really_ nice bonus, in her opinion.

"You're too warm for your own good," Ruby said as she stretched out a bit, her eyes closing. She felt like she could fall asleep on him. He was the best bed in the entire world to her.

"And you're too cute for your own good," toJaune replied, "but what can you do?" He laughed as Ruby slapped at him softly.

Another silence between them lulled her into a half asleep state.

Ruby was startled as Yang stood up suddenly, but Jaune held onto her with a chuckle. She couldn't help but put a hand on her heart to lessen the pace of her heartbeat. Somehow, she never quite got over Yang's tendency to startle her every so often in moments of calm.

Yang used her nail to tap at an empty glass soda bottle, the room being quiet enough for the soft _tink tink tink_ to be heard by everyone. "Well, as much as I love doing nothing and letting the lovebirds here enjoy their long overdue moment of intimacy," Yang said, pausing to wink at Ruby and Jaune, "I propose we play a game, so the rest of us don't get so bored we blow our brains out!"

Imagining her sister's morbid statement play out, Ruby cringed, shaking her head at her sister's choice of words. "Alright, what should we play?" she asked.

"Ooh, I know!" Nora said, jumping up off the floor to join Yang. "We could play Truth or Dare, or Spin the Bottle!"

Despite how cliche those games were for a sleepover, all present could see Yang's eyes visibly brighten at the prospect.

Ruby gulped as, all around her, time seemed to stop and she could see the gears turning in her sister's head. She watched as Yang's eyes traveled to the bottle in her hand, raised aloft as if she were some kind of holy-woman with a cross. Almost instantly, Ruby knew what was going to happen. There would be no vote, once her sister decided, it was going to happen.

For some reason, Yang's word was law at sleepovers. No matter who it was that was there, or where they were, everyone looked to Yang for fun. Because if anyone knew fun, it was Yang. It was simple logic that everyone followed pretty well. Ruby herself couldn't even see any faults in it. Yang was just the most fun person around, bar none.

Time returned to normal for Ruby as she mentally prepared for what she knew Yang's next words were going to be.

"Spin the Bottle it is!" Yang exclaimed with the biggest smile Ruby had seen on her all night. It was almost as if the very idea of the game excited her, and really it was no wonder why. The spark of mischief that Ruby was so familiar with flashed through Yang's eyes, and she knew why it was that Yang jumped at the chance like she did.

It was the natural want to cause chaos. Well, natural for her anyway. The way she no doubt saw it was that there were two couples in the room, it was really a no-brainer that the choice of game would provide some amount of awkwardness and discomfort among the players. It was perfect.

It almost seemed instantaneous, the way everyone gathered together under Yang's word, sitting around the empty soda bottle. Ruby couldn't help but flash a worried glance over to Jaune, who seemed to be taking the whole thing in stride. She knew, though, on the inside he was a mess of anxiety right now. She could _almost_ hear the screaming in his expression.

She sent a glance to Weiss, and she got a worried look back. They were definitely both thinking the same thing in that moment.

* * *

Weiss' mind was on fire with all the negative consequences this game could bring, the anxiety was rising in her chest with every single possible event unfolding in her head. This was quite possibly the dumbest choice of a game on Yang's part, but Weiss knew better than to assume that Yang didn't _know_ that. She was just trying to get a rise out of them, she wanted them to stand up and walk right out of the room.

And that's exactly what she would have done if Ruby's eyes hadn't have stopped her. The pleading look she got was not one she could respond to with anything other than one of the same. Ruby wanted her to stay, knowing that she couldn't really leave. Weiss wanted her to leave with her. With their partners in tow.

They both knew how the other felt for their lovers, they talked about them with one another so often after all. They both felt like the other's relationship was one worth protecting. They were both healthy, thriving, and destined to last for a long time in their eyes. Unless of course, something like this came along.

Ruby turned to look to at Jaune, and Weiss followed suit. The look on his face was nearly unreadable to Weiss. She turned to Blake, and almost immediately she felt like she had been punched in the gut. Blake looked to be torn.

Weiss couldn't fault her, really. On one hand, she loved drama. She was someone who ate it up, especially friend drama. So the drama that was promised by playing Spin the Bottle was calling to her. On the other hand, however, Blake knew the potential pain she could be inflicting upon Weiss. And she would never even dare think about such a thing as kissing someone else. Blake knew that Weiss wouldn't either.

Weiss shook her head, both Blake's interest and Ruby's pleading stopping her from standing up and walking out the door. She was getting ahead of herself. A simple kiss didn't mean much, not a peck. Well, not much anyway. What she was seeing in her head was simply not the reality of the situation, she told herself.

What she was seeing was a whole lot of sweat, red swollen lips, and more passion than she knew existed between most of the people in the room.

She took a deep breath, turning to Yang. "What are the rules exactly?" Weiss asked, knowing that often the rules changed, and ultimately it was up to Yang to be as forgiving or as harsh as she wanted to be. But seeing as how it was Yang she was dealing with, Weiss didn't hold her breath.

"Yes, what _are_ the rules, Yang?" Ren said, piping up for what was his fourth time the entire sleepover, having been in the corner, quietly polishing his weapons.

"That is an excellent question, guys," Yang answered, "and one I will have to think about! Give me a second…" She put a finger to her chin as everyone started chatting amongst themselves in the meantime. Weiss found that she couldn't really say much of anything, the anxiety she felt earlier still lingering, creeping up every now and then.

Blake just continued to hug her from behind, rubbing at the skin of her arm softly, as if sensing her troubled thoughts.

"Alright," Yang shouted, "the rules are as follows! I couldn't think of any rules, so we just spin the bottle going from left to right, starting with Pyrrha, and whoever it lands on that person has to kiss them for a total of five seconds. On the lips. It can be as intense as you want it to be, to avoid making this terrible for the lovely couples in the room."

As she finished talking, she took her spot in the circle. Weiss, Ruby, Blake, and Jaune all let out a sigh. Sending one another amused looks afterward. No doubt it would still be awkward as hell, but awkward they could handle. Awkward wasn't relationship ending levels of bad.

They all wasted no time jumping into the game, and Pyrrha spun the bottle almost immediately as Yang placed it down. She seemed excited just to have something to do. Or she was hoping it landed on someone. Either way, Weiss found it pretty cute. Pyrrha never showed her giddy side but every now and then.

The bottle spun for a solid seven seconds, coming to a stop pointing directly at Nora, who was directly to the right of Pyrrha. She shrugged and smiled as Nora bounced happily beside her, her hair bouncing with her. Pyrrha noted that she really could use a haircut as she leaned in, and Nora met her halfway, letting out an amusingly loud "Mmmmmmmmmmuah!" as they internally counted to five.

The kiss was actually pretty cute to all watching, making the group let out a collective 'aww,' and making Pyrrha blush.

Nora gave her a hug as she giggled, all eyes turning to Ren as he put his hand on the bottle and gave it a good spin.

A collective gasp rang out when it landed on Yang, right across from him. Yang, however, only smirked. She reached over and grabbed him by his shirt, pulling him in for a decidedly dramatic and over the top kiss that bordered on making out. Though, all could tell there was no tongue. It was, however, almost cinematic, and when they pulled away on the count of five they both gasped for air.

Nora applauded. "That was kind of hot," she said. Pyrrha nodded her head but otherwise said nothing.

"Alright," said Yang, "next up is Weiss."

At the mention of her name, any and all enjoyment she was getting out of the game disappeared in an instant. All eyes were on her. She felt the familiar feeling of doubt rising up from the dark, damnable pit that she often fell into late at night. Usually, when in the company of friends, it was quiet, saving its awful feelings for when she was most vulnerable, all alone.

But here and now it was opening its jaws, ready to grab her and throw her in.

She felt Blake's hands rubbing and soothing her once more, making those awful doubts disappear. It was her way of telling Weiss that she had her blessing, that it was okay. Nothing bad was going to happen. They were with friends. Friends who cared about them and their relationship, and more than likely wouldn't let things get out of control.

She nodded her head and took a deep breath, calming herself down to a degree. It wasn't enough, but it would have to do.

She looked to Ruby, who gave her a small smile and a thumbs up, trying to instill some more courage in her, but only serving to make her chuckle at how awkward she looked at the moment.

"Well, go on, Weiss, we're waiting," Yang said.

Quickly, and without even looking, Weiss spun the bottle.

One heartbeat. Another. _Another._ The bottle spun wildly. Almost too wildly. It probably spun a full three-hundred and sixty degrees several times. When finally it slowed, her heartbeats only seemed to go faster.

Weiss started to lean close to it, the whole group following her lead. Stop, she thought. Just stop spinning. There was nothing she wanted more than for the bottle to land on Blake. If it did, she could rest easy for at least her turn.

The bottle sputtered as soon as it pointed at Blake, slow enough for everyone to see clearly who it was pointing towards. It didn't stop, however, and Weiss felt her heart skip a beat, nearly making her entire body go weak.

She almost missed it stop, her eyesight seemingly nonexistent for a moment. When she looked up from the bottle, she felt her heart jump from her chest to her throat.

Ruby.

The girl that Weiss had come to know as her partner just stared at her, her eyes also showing disbelief. Of course, thinking back in the moment, Weiss wondered why it was she hadn't thought of this as a statistical possibility. Perhaps she was hoping the game would end before it would even have a chance of happening.

The whole room was silent, and she couldn't shake the feeling that everyone was looking at them expectantly. The atmosphere was somewhat different now, though. As if they were expecting _more_ out of the two of them. More than the last two kisses.

She looked deep into Ruby's eyes and a silent conversation passed between them.

' _Should I just go for it…?'_ Weiss asked with her eyes.

' _I don't see why not,'_ replied Ruby with hers.

As if the silence was so thick it was impeding her progress, Weiss slowly crawled forward. Ruby looked away and blushed from the unintentionally sexy display, and nearly choked on her own saliva when Weiss came to a halt right in front of her and placed her hand on her shoulder.

Weiss wanted to hurry and get it over with, but still some part of her was too hesitant to go through with it fully, stopping herself just short of Ruby's lips. She was so close to her, she could feel her breath ghosting across hers. The odd thing was…

It was kind of inviting.

The smell of her breath was like peppermints. There had been so many left over from the holidays that Ruby found herself constantly sucking on them. She had lost count of how many she had earlier.

Weiss stared at her lips, and their plump redness almost called out to her. They were such a different color than Blake's. Blake's were perfect, but the color of Ruby's lips was so utterly entrancing, it seemed. It just called out _kiss me,_ and though she was surprised by the sudden thought, Weiss couldn't deny that she suddenly wanted oh so badly to do just that.

It's just an intrusive thought, Weiss thought to herself, it'll go away when I kiss her. Five seconds is enough to sate curiosity.

Staring into Ruby's eyes yet again, there was something else in there now. Something she could only see so close to her. Something she had seen time and time again only in the eyes of one other person. _Desire_. Desire so strong that it was surprising that they were still just inches apart.

The room was deadly silent as if everyone was interpreting their standstill as nerves. Weiss wanted someone to say something, while she still had half a brain. Anything to pull her away from these thoughts, and what she was about to do.

But no one spoke. And in a bright red flash, her lips were pressed up against Ruby's.

Her lips were soft. Soft and sweet. Again the smell of peppermint was intense, but the taste on her lips made the whole thing perfect. Weiss let out a tiny moan, almost inaudible to everyone but Ruby. But Ruby was the only one who mattered in the moment, and she _definitely_ heard it.

Ruby's hands found their way to Weiss' face, and the kiss deepened in an instant, Weiss all but falling on top of her as Ruby's hands began exploring her body. She squirmed under the younger girl's touch, her nerves on fire from the pure electricity of the feeling Ruby's fingers gave her.

Their entire world hazed over in a fit of lust and want, and suddenly all the sexual tension between them seemed so easy to see. Maybe they had learned to hide it even from themselves, but it was more than just on display now, they had crossed the threshold entirely.

Weiss' pace increased and Ruby let out a moan as she moved to her exposed neck, biting down hard enough to leave a mark but not enough to hurt her. She sucked and licked at her flesh, bringing her all the pleasure that Weiss had previously reserved for only one person.

It was in that instance that they were thrown apart from one another by Yang, panting and gasping as their world slowly returned to them.

The first thing they noticed was the tense feeling in the air, and the second thing was the shocked faces of their 'audience.'

Yang pushed Weiss over towards Pyrrha, who caught a tight hold of her, and held onto Ruby herself. Everyone's shocked expressions cleared as they finally processed just what it was that they had witnessed.

Weiss, finally coming down from her lust induced high, panicked, looking to and fro for Blake as if she had just realized what it was that she had done. She was nowhere to be seen, and neither, for that matter, was Jaune. Something that Ruby just seemed to realize as well.

Weiss looked away from Ruby, not wanting to see her eyes when she inevitably looked up to her.

"What the hell was what?" Yang asked firmly, looking at Weiss as if she had just done something as horrible as murder. And she might as well have, she felt. "No, seriously, explain to me how the fuck that happened!"

Ruby flinched at the sudden angry tone, tears welling up in her eyes. She started crying, and Yang suddenly hugged her close, realizing that now probably wasn't the time to be acting like they just killed someone.

"Weiss?" Yang said, though in a lower, and much more calm voice this time. "What happened?"

"I don't know, I was so scared, but then she- I mean, I just-... It was like I was moving on autopilot or something, it just happened!" Weiss stuttered out. Pyrrha let her go and she fell to the floor, finding that her legs didn't want to work at all. Pyrrha moved to sit down beside her, making sure she was alright.

"Sis?" Yang whispered softly to Ruby, who was still cradled against her breast tightly, securely. "Are you okay?"

She shook her head, sobbing openly and loudly. As soon as the sobs reached Weiss' ears she felt numb, entirely oblivious to anything and everything that was happening around her.

She felt like garbage.

Weiss rolled over onto her back, staring up at the ceiling. From her position on the floor, she could see that the only people left in the room were her, Ruby, Pyrrha, and Yang, the others having presumably chased after Blake and Jaune.

She covered her eyes, feeling as if she was too hollow and empty to shed tears. Ruby seemed to have no problem doing so, but Ruby was always better at crying than she was. Weiss never quite got the hang of it. In all her time alive, it's always been dry sobs and emptiness.

Her ears were ringing in the silence, the sound of it as familiar as the ground she grew up on. It allowed her thoughts to run free, like always. Despite herself, she was full of them. Each one like a poison, slowly stealing what happiness remained.

Her ears continued to ring until even Ruby's crying was drowned out.

Thoughts of Blake were swirling like a tempest, crashing waves taking the ship she was stranded on. And just like that, one little thought crossed her mind as she sunk into the darkness of the bottom.

' _Do I even love her?'_

She felt the red strings around her heart loosen as she thought more and more, remembering so many moments where she knew for sure she loved Blake.

All the times they cuddled, all the times they slept together, all the passionate moments they shared beforehand. Every single time she said, "I love you, too." It was all so real, then, but now she wasn't so sure. And all because the girl currently crying across the room. All because she wasn't crying herself.

Was that all it took then? For her heart to loosen ties? Finding someone else that could make it beat as frantic as Blake could?

Maybe. Maybe not. But Weiss knew one thing for sure, she had to find her. She had to make things right. She couldn't just leave it like this and hope things turned out okay.

For once she had real responsibilities that mattered in the moment.

She scrambled up off the floor, breaking into a run past Ruby, past Yang, and through the door before Pyrrha could even react.

* * *

Blake didn't exactly know what to expect as she rose from her bed to answer the door, wiping the tears from her red, puffy eyes. The knocking was incessant, demanding. Like whoever was on the other side didn't get the memo. She wanted to be left alone. She wanted to fall asleep and stay asleep for years.

Whatever she had been expecting, whether Ruby, Yang, Jaune coming to cry with someone who knew his pain, whatever; she didn't expect _her._ Not Weiss. Not so soon.

But of course, regardless of everything, she was there. And she was standing in the doorway, her head to the floor. And Blake couldn't help but notice that she wasn't even crying.

 _She wasn't even sorry for what she'd done._

Or maybe she was, Blake reminded herself. She needed to calm down. She was telling herself earlier, before her mind tore her down, that maybe it was all just a misunderstanding. Maybe it was just an accident. These kinds of accidents happen, sometimes, after all, and maybe she just needed to explain.

But even still, seeing her only made it worse. Blake wanted to slam the door in her face, but she found that she couldn't, she wouldn't. Even after being hurt, she'd never hurt her back.

"What do you want," Blake sobbed, stepping aside and letting her in. As much as she didn't want to, Weiss _did_ live in the dorm. She couldn't very well kick her out forever.

"I want to talk, Blake. Talk this through," Weiss said, moving to sit on her bed. "We both know that that was a mistake."

Weiss felt a pain in her chest at that word. _Mistake._ For some reason, it hurt to imply. God, did it hurt.

Blake nodded her head, keeping her distance as much as possible. The distance was the best weapon she had. And she was using it as much as she could.

"We can talk it through. I believe you. It was a mistake, an accident. You wouldn't lie about that." Blake wiped at her eyes again, her voice coming out strained. "But… You just seemed to adverse to it at first. You could have just said no…"

Weiss' chest hurt suddenly, her heart feeling completely broken in two at the sound of Blake's voice. The words cut deeper than the pain. She could have just said no, it was entirely possible to just walk away from the game, and she chose the option that lead her here.

"Maybe I could have," Weiss said softly. "But I wasn't thinking straight. As soon as I got close it was like I just… _lost control_. I'm sorry, Blake. I'm so sorry. I don't know how to explain it any better…"

Blake turned away from her, crossing her arms as the ears atop her head twitched involuntarily.

For minutes, neither Weiss nor Blake said anything, choosing instead to let the silence overtake them and wash them away.

They were flailing overboard, lost to the waves of the deafening absence of noise for a long time until Blake finally found dry land, and with it, her voice.

"I-..." She took a deep breath. "Weiss. I think I can forgive you. I just need to know one thing."

Weiss looked up to see Blake's back still turned to her. She was looking over her shoulder, the tear trails still visible under her eye.

"W-what?" Weiss breathed out, barely able to keep her heart from leaping out of her chest. It was trying so hard to burst out of its cage.

"Just… Please tell me that there was only lust in that kiss. That there was nothing else. Please, just tell me that at least."

Weiss' chest clenched and she opened her mouth to respond. Nothing came out. She tried again but found it even harder.

It was like she knew the words she wanted to say, but for whatever reason, they just wouldn't come out. She felt herself grow hot, her cheeks and ears glowing red.

Blake stopped looking over her shoulder, her gaze turning to the floor.

' _Just lie…'_ Weiss thought. ' _Just lie. Just lie to her. Spit it out. SPIT IT OUT, BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE! JUST FUCKING LIE TO HER!'_

Blake waited for a few more seconds of dead air, before calmly turning around, clearly dejected.

"Okay," Blake said. "Please leave."

And it was with those final words that Weiss felt her entire world shatter, as she slowly walked out of the dorm and closed the door behind her.

* * *

Ruby had felt the tiniest bit of a spark with Weiss. The tiniest bit. But she was sure she understood it as pure sexual attraction. She found Weiss to be beautiful, and in some cases really, really sexy. She was her type through and through. In terms of women anyway.

But she knew that she had someone better than Weiss, she had Jaune, and she may have potentially ruined everything between the two of them with a measly, short makeout session.

And if she was telling the truth, as good as it was, Jaune could do so much better than Weiss. Just the feelings she held for him alone made anything he could do ten times better.

These thoughts and more raced through Ruby's head as she herself raced through the halls of Beacon, looking for Jaune as fast as possible, leaving a trail of rose petals in her wake.

She stopped almost too suddenly in one of the student lounges to be met with the sight of Jaune sitting alone on the sofa by the window. The subtle smell of coffee grounds and vanilla perfumed the air, and the lighting gave the room a comfortable feeling.

Overall, the room was happier than she knew this confrontation was going to be.

The whole vibe of the room was positive, and it held an early morning type aesthetic with the TV on the wall providing some faint background noise.

Maybe this would serve to make everything easier.

Ruby slowly approached him, but she knew he already knew she was there. For one, the familiar whoosh of her Semblance more than likely tipped him off first thing.

But he didn't run, he didn't try to make any excuses. That meant he was wanting to talk. And that was all Ruby could ask for.

"Jaune? Can we talk about what just happened?" Ruby asked softly, taking a seat beside him hesitantly, and wiping at the bit tears left behind from all her crying.

She vaguely noticed that she hadn't really done much more growing since she arrived at Beacon, as her feet still didn't quite reach the floor.

He didn't try to shoo her away, or even really react to her taking a seat. He just sort of stared out the window.

"I don't mind," he said. She could tell he'd been crying too. But he always ran out of tears faster than she did. He was always able to calm down so quickly.

"What happened was…" Ruby drifted off, kicking her feet back and forward.

"I know it was an accident, so… It's okay," Jaune said, interrupting her as she opened her mouth to continue. "I know things happen sometimes. I already accept your apology. I just need to know one thing."

He turned to her and she shifted a bit to allow him to get closer to her.

"Of course, anything," she said.

He grabbed a hold of her hands, giving them a gentle squeeze. "Do you still love me?" he asked.

Ruby could barely take the fear in his eyes, the doubt that she saw so clearly reflecting in them. Where there was once clear blue eyes she now saw the monsters that so plagued him once before, back when they met.

She saw self-doubt, she saw self-hate, and she saw low self-esteem.

She had given all of these things to him once again and made him doubt her love for him. All in one swift go.

She squeezed his hands back and with such a firmness that he couldn't mistake it as anything other than her telling him to never let go.

"Jaune Arc, I'm still madly in love with you. I don't want anybody but you. I've never _wanted_ anyone but you."

She said it with such a firm voice, and yet it was so loving, so caring. He placed his forehead against hers, and he kissed her lips. He tried to ignore the fact that Weiss had kissed them just a few moments ago.

He found that he could. It just took a while. And that's really what the both of them were thinking, as they cuddled on the sofa.

To build back what they once had… Was going to take a while.

* * *

Weiss ran at a full sprint away from the dorm, desperate to get away from it all, _away from her._ She ran until she tripped halfway down the hall, one of her slippers coming loose and falling off of her foot.

She didn't even try to get back up. She laid there for some odd minutes until she felt like moving again. And when she did, she didn't bother grabbing her slipper.

She just walked on, slowly. Until she reached somewhere she could be alone. She needed to gather her thoughts. She needed to talk to Ruby.

There was just no denying it anymore. She couldn't lie to herself. She had feelings for Ruby.

There was a hope. A thin hope… That maybe Ruby would understand. That maybe she'd feel the same. She kissed back after all. She liked it.

Maybe… So many hopeful maybes.

She kept walking. Until she stopped dead in her tracks at what she saw.

The room smelled of coffee grounds and vanilla.


End file.
